Fanning the Copyright Flames

trapeze dress.jpg Fashion copyright laws may soon cause the extinction of the way most of us shop.

According to the L.A. Times , the Senate is considering a bill that would extend a designer’s protection beyond just their logo to the more elusive “style” of a piece.

Emili Vesilind, the author of the article, points out the impact the new law could have on the way trends trickle down from the runway to our closets:

“Last year’s ubiquitous tent dress, for instance, made its debut on the runways, but by early this year, versions of it were seen in every level of retail. Would there have been so many to choose from if a few top-brass designers had registered their takes on the design early on?”

If fast-fashion chains are pretty much barred from producing the most important trends of each season (which is by no means certain,) there might be a great divide between what we see on the runway and what we see on people in everyday life.

We think that shoppers wanting to look fresh without spending a fortune would have to turn to vintage. This is great in its own way since vintage clothing is a better option environmentally and is often of higher quality and more original than what you’ll find at H&M or Zara.

But then again, it’s so much easier to hit the big retail shops to quickly find something on trend, and always in your size. And if everyone starts wearing a lot more vintage, would this make a whole new type of street fashion, one un-related to the runways?

What would you do if the fast-fashion boutiques disappeared?

—ALISON COOL

posted by guest

Nov 13, 2007 11:06AM

The best anyone can do with this is hope to set a Potter Stewart-style legal precedent, so that "I know it when I see it" becomes applicable to fashion copying as well as obscenity trials, because registration of ideas simply won't work.

We might one day see a world without Forever 21 knockoffs, but it's ridiculous to think there's no middle ground between runway looks and vintage. No one would be able to copyright a classic white shirt or a pair of jeans--and it's not like the fashion police will come and empty your closet of everything you already own. Perhaps, god forbid, people will simply buy less crap and not worry as much about being "on trend," or maybe we'll all learn to sew, which was what everyone did for hundreds of years before there was ready-to-wear anyway.

posted by miriamkristina

Nov 13, 2007 11:43AM

Very well said. Legally there is a middle ground where artistic elements are protected, where the truly creative can be given the same support that artists of all other genres are already afforded in the US. Meanwhile, general characteristics can be knocked off and purchased by those who are looking for the idea of the design without the premium price that covers the creative details. You get what you pay for, everyone is happy.

Nov 13, 2007 11:49AM

sew.

Nov 13, 2007 12:48PM

I think there are just too many holes in this arguement. I mean, in theory, "tent" dresses aren't a new design, so if the law were to have been around before the return of the tent, how could these designers say they have been copied??? I understand protecting a print, but the silhouette of a garment? Tricky.

Also, how often would small companies really be able to protect themselves? The copyrights will be expensive. Plus, can a small label, say Alisha Levine, really afford to sue someone like A.B.S. by Allen Schwartz??? Who do you think will have the better lawyers??

- Leia

posted by Cynthia C

Nov 13, 2007 4:17PM

Does this mean Lacoste and Ralph Lauren could sue each other?

Nov 13, 2007 6:16PM

Vintage? In those amounts? In San Francisco, vintage is not even close to cheap and good luck finding the correct sizes. Good God.

Nov 14, 2007 1:31AM

while im all for designers having their individual designs protected by copyrights..how exactly are u supposed to copy a sillouete especially if its already existed for a while? and it makes me wonder what would happen to stores like H&M and Zara or forever 21 who thrive on knocking off whatevers on the runway. if they run out of stuff they can copy..well..they dont have anywhere else to go do they? but maybe this only bothers me cuz i live in thailand where i havent seen a single vintage store, and the clothes at big cheap malls like mbk are tacky and very small...i guess i better start sewing..